The thumbsticks are accented with the SteelSeries burning orange colour, and are rather low in height. The thumbsticks have a textured rubber, concave surface for grip and can also be clicked in (L3 and R3).
From the side you can see a seam running around the controller and the pressure sensitive buttons are placed quite close to the edge.
On top there are the bumper butters and triggers along with a dedicated battery and wireless button. There is an oval LED strip which displays 4 LEDs as well as a Start, back and home button.
There are no external ports for the Stratus XL, but there is a smooth hard battery cover, there is also a dedicated on/off switch.
The Stratus XL is powered by 2x AA batteries, rated to last for up to 40 hours, but on the inside there is also a micro USB for wired gaming.